Sustainable development in small and medium enterprises: The role of entrepreneurial orientation in supply chain management

Organizations are under increased pressure to improve their sustainable performance through the adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have lagged behind larger corporations due to a number of factors. Chief among these factors is the lack of resources and capabilities. In this study, we investigate whether entrepreneurial orientation as a distinctive firm-level resource contributes to the successful implementation of GSCM practices within SMEs. We use primary data obtained from 316 manufacturing SMEs and analyze the data by using a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). Our findings show four equifinal configurations of GSCM practices and the components of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) that lead to high environmental performance. Two practices, “eco-design” and “internal environmental management”, are present in all configurations, with the latter being the single core condition. The components of EO are present in all the configurations. Three distinct configurations lead to the simultaneous achievement of high environmental performance and high economic performance. Some noticeable differences appear in these configurations: “internal environmental management” is no longer a core condition, instead external practices (“green purchasing,” “cooperation with customers including environmental requirements,” and “investment recovery”) and “risk-taking” become core conditions. We exptrapolate our findings into a set of propositions that expand theory on the link between entrepreneurial orientation and sustainable performance. Our study provides insights for managers who seek to infuse entrepreneurial thoughts and actions into their green supply chain initiatives.     

The role of innovation in the implementation of green supply chain management practices

How organizational green practices become routinely embedded in supply chains remains underexplored in the literature. Based on the practice‐based view and normalization process theory, this study adopts a novel perspective on green supply chain management (GSCM) practices implementation and suggests that innovation is a crucial mechanism in such process. Specifically, we theorize and test the mediating effect of product and process innovation on the relationship between GSCM practices and sustainability performance. Survey data from 173 manufacturing firms were used to test the model hypotheses. Our findings show that product and process innovation mediate the relationship between GSCM practices and sustainability performance. The findings also suggest that the relevance of different innovation mechanisms depends on the stage of the operational lifecycle within which the practices are implemented. Our study provides insights for managers and scholars seeking to define innovation strategies to ensure the successful implementation of GSCM practices.     

Immoral Entrenchment: How Crisis Reverses the Ethical Effects of Moral Intensity

Journal of Business Ethics - Men typically express more willingness than women to perpetrate fraudulent acts like lying in negotiations. However, women express just as much willingness in some...     

A multivariate study of over‐indebtedness' causes and consequences

This paper proposes a comprehensive explanatory model to explain both causes and consequences of over‐indebtedness. It presents as causes some borrower aspects, such as propensity to indebtedness and low financial literacy. Other causes are borrower circumstances: adverse external shocks, borrower internal problems and financial institutions' pressure. The model incorporates consequences on the borrower, the lender and the society. The model has been tested with a survey filled in by experts and over‐indebted individuals. Results have been analysed using multivariate techniques, including canonical correlations. There are differences in the opinions of experts and individuals: the latter blame external shocks or financial institutions' pressure, while the former find relevant factors the financial illiteracy or the tendency to imitate others. Experts and individuals agree on the consequences: poverty growth in the society and declining borrower's welfare. The paper concludes with the need to improve financial literacy, especially in the risks involved in over‐indebtedness.     

The impact of professionalization and partnerships on nonprofit productivity

ABSTRACT

This research evaluates the influence of professionalization and partnering with firms on nonprofit productivity. Professionalization is measured in terms of the ratio of paid employees to volunteers, and productivity is measured through the ratio of total assets to number of beneficiaries, and the ratio of total revenues to number of paid employees and volunteers. Empirical analysis combines a survey to a representative sample of Spanish nonprofits, with information available from public sources. Results confirm the existence of a ‘U-shaped’ relationship between professionalization and nonprofits’ capability to reach more beneficiaries with lower assets; a positive effect of professionalization on revenue generation capability; and a positive effect of partnerships with businesses on the nonprofit’s asset-per-beneficiary ratio. Discussion sheds light on the on-going debate about the implications of professionalization and partnering with firms for the capacity of nonprofit organizations to attract resources and to extend their reach in a more efficient way.     

Still pounding on the glass ceiling: A study of female leaders in hospitality,travel, and tourism management

Today, U.S. females represent the majority in both the hospitality and tourism management classroom and the work environment. However, the proverbial “glass ceiling” continues to exist, and evidence of career advancement obstacles remain salient in the hospitality, travel, and tourism management workplace. The purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences of successful female industry leaders in the hospitality, travel, and tourism industry, as well as their perceptions as to how they were able to overcome gender barriers and disparities. Findings offer participant reported “top issues” facing female leaders in the workplace, as well as strategies for overcoming these issues.     

The failure of the monetary model of exchange rate determination

In this article, we test three popular versions of the monetary model (flexible price, forward-looking and real interest differential models) for the OECD member countries by applying Johansen cointegration technique. Based on country-by-country analysis, we conclude that monetary models do not provide the expected results. We reveal several shortcomings of the models and examine the building blocks of the fundamental version. Although researchers always blame the deviations from purchasing power parity as the reason for the failure of the monetary model, our analysis indicates that invalidity of Keynesian money demand function is also responsible for unfavourable results.     

Vertical integration in production and services: development in transaction cost economics

In this paper, we first establish the core, fundamental concepts of Williamson’s TCE, examining the different governance structures or the institutional alternatives that TCE theory proposes. We go on to describe some critical considerations and theoretical proposals that correspond fundamentally to Williamson’s heuristic model, the integration of incentives in organizational forms, idiosyncratic demand, and how the concept of transaction is conceived in general.     

Mentality,motivation, and economic decision-making in Ancient Rome: Cicero and Tullia's shrine

Cicero's letters to his friend Atticus are an invaluable source for the study of the financial and economic activities pursued by Late Republican upper-class Romans. Beyond the information concerning the diversity, scale, and impact of their businesses, these extraordinary documents give enlightening testimonies to the psychological factors that affected economic behaviour and the process of decision-making. The case of Tullia's shrine, a complex operation that concerned the search for and purchase of a garden-estate in one of the most exclusive areas of the Roman suburbs, became Cicero's most personal challenge and obsession. An accurate study of this affair through the orator's own voice allows us to explore the concept of ancient rationality, as well as the psychological and environmental mechanisms that led to economic strategies and performances. The study also tests the applicability of ideas and methodologies from the field of behavioural economics in the context of the first-century BC real estate market, a fluctuating and speculative business sector highly informed by credit culture, social status, and unstable politics.